* From a Tribune piece the other day about Glenn Poshard’s endorsement of JB Pritzker…

Pritzker is backing a measure to expand taxpayer funding for abortion to women on Medicaid and covered by state employee health insurance. Poshard opposed abortion rights as a governor candidate and member of Congress.

Pritzker once served as chairman of the advisory board of the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence. As an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for Congress in 1998 on the North Shore, he proposed a ban of the sale of handguns. Poshard was a gun rights advocate during his tenure in Congress, though as a candidate for governor he softened his staunch opposition to gun control by supporting a ban on some types of semi-automatic weapons.

Pritzker also has been a major and longtime supporter of gay rights, and last year chaired the anniversary gala for Equality Illinois, the state’s oldest and largest advocacy group. Poshard opposed gay rights and as a candidate for governor, he told activists that some property owners should have the right to refuse to rent to people based on their sexual orientation.

“I am so proud to have the endorsement of a distinguished leader like Glenn Poshard,” Pritzker said in announcing the endorsement.

But Pritzker bristled a bit when asked by a reporter about how his progressive background meshes with former U.S. Rep. Glenn Poshard’s endorsement last week. In announcing the endorsement Friday, Pritzker said in a statement that “as an elected official, an advocate for children and an educator, Glenn Poshard has always fought for what’s right.”

As a congressman and unsuccessful 1998 Democratic governor candidate, Poshard backed letting schools seek waivers to allow corporal punishment, opposed gay rights and was an ardent foe of gun control — positions at odds with Pritzker’s.

On Wednesday, Pritzker initially said he was “proud” to have Poshard’s endorsement in a “big tent” Democratic Party and said his earlier statement was expressing “a level of admiration” for “somebody who stands up for their own beliefs.”

Asked about Poshard’s conflicting beliefs, Pritzker said: “He’s not running for public office. I am. And it’s my beliefs and what I’ll carry out as governor that really matter.”

The key here is that with Poshard’s stances and beliefs, Poshard has decided to back JB.

That’s what’s going on.

This idea that getting someone’s support or not means you take on the absolute beliefs and stances of the person they are supporting.

Let’s not forget when someone who has an unseemly background (someone Not like a Poshard) endorses or supports someone. What do we hear?

“I do not want their support and this is an instance where all you can do is rebuff the support”

That said, this is why this is really good prep work, then Pritzker pivoting correctly while not dininishing the endorsement…

===
On Wednesday, Pritzker initially said he was “proud” to have Poshard’s endorsement in a “big tent” Democratic Party and said his earlier statement was expressing “a level of admiration” for “somebody who stands up for their own beliefs.”

Asked about Poshard’s conflicting beliefs, Pritzker said: “He’s not running for public office. I am. And it’s my beliefs and what I’ll carry out as governor that really matter.”===

I have trouble seeing how Glen Poshard breaks through the noise in any way, except that he’d be a useful surrogate at Southern IL events that Pritzker and Stratton can’t make it to. And the campaign may not even use him that much.

But hopefully you guys understand that the gay community has a right to be a little aggrieved by “Glenn Poshard has always fought for what’s right” next to “he told activists that some property owners should have the right to refuse to rent to people based on their sexual orientation”.

Maybe that’s why the comments were strong yesterday decrying Chuy’s vote for the sugared drink tax. call someone out because they call you out for many other things. Wordslinger is correct about purity tests. but that goes all ways, not just JB’s way.

@ Curl- sure. It’s a decent get. But that might get you, what, an extra dozen or so volunteers? Don’t get me wrong, that turns into real votes down the line, but it’s not going to transform Pritzker’s public profile. No one’s going to think he’s a good ol’ boy populist warrior, for good or ill, because of Poshard.

While it’s still wrong to infer from Chuy’s endorsement that Kennedy is anything but opposed to the pop tax, the fact is that that is a pretty major political issue that Chuy will soon vote on again. Poshard’s never going to vote for anything again. I’m not justifying anything, I’m just saying that the immediacy of the issue explains it.

Arsenal - down there “a dozen or so volunteers” is a big deal. Southern Illinois is so spread out and most of the population is concentrated into a few small cities/areas (like Mt. Vernon or the Carbondale-Marion-Harrisburg corridor). Poshard might also be able to help further push some of the union faithful in the Metro East to help JBP with door-to-door activities.

JB has so much history of supporting the LGBT community going back decades that I think he can take the limited heat on this. Poshard is still weirdly revered downstate so this was absolutely worth taking his endorsement.

@ Curl- yes. If I wasn’t clear, I apologize. Poshard, if used well, will translate into real votes. I’m just saying Poshard doesn’t really “change anyone’s mind” about Pritzker. He can just take some people who were probably going to vote for Pritzker and turn them into volunteers. That’s real and useful, too. But it’s kind of a different thing.

==Poshard is still weirdly revered downstate so this was absolutely worth taking his endorsement.==

I think that’s kind of overstated, but “Former Congressman and Democratic nominee for Governor” can get five minutes to pitch his candidate at just about any union meeting or county party committee call, and that’s pretty useful.

I don’t follow you Willy. He’s literally been a supporter of LGBT causes for decades. Marched in the Pride parade when it was still a protest march. And he’s been a supporter nonstop. So what’s the problem?

That said, it’s an example of how those on the left can damage their candidate (like, I don’t know, how the Bernie zealots helped elect Donald Trump). I prefer a Big Tent Democratic Party where there’s room for both Glen Poshard and Chuy Garcia - even though my personal beliefs don’t align with either.

Glenn lost most of his power down here when he took the high paying job and SIU and then publicly battled with the board when enrollment went south. He is still a southern Democrat with the values most of the Trump Democrats have I.E. Pro-gun, Pro-life, and physical conservative. He will be called out at events and ask about his support of JDs liberal agenda.The old vote the party line is a thing of the past down here.

Let’s imagine that both men are still command of their understandings of these social issues, but instead agree that Rauner is a disasterous governor to a point where those social issues are secondary.